


Paternity Leave

by sophisticatedloserchick



Category: The Flash (TV 2014)
Genre: Domestic Fluff, F/M, Romance, tornado twins - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-19
Updated: 2019-02-19
Packaged: 2019-10-31 18:24:12
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,375
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17854790
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sophisticatedloserchick/pseuds/sophisticatedloserchick
Summary: Barry is struggling to go back to work after the Twins are born





	Paternity Leave

Barry had gone through some difficult things in his life.

The daily grind and dangers of being the superhero of Central City would take its toll on anyone. He’s had to take on Meta-humans, evil time traveling Speedsters, even invading aliens. Time and time again Barry had been pushed to his absolute limit by those who wished to destroy him.

Yet none of that had tested him more than this morning.

He should be kissing his wife and heading off to work by now. He was dressed in his work clothes, his satchel filled with his work documents was slung over his shoulder, his morning coffee and breakfast already consumed. But instead of walking out the door his feet remained firmly rooted to the ground. Every cell in his body screaming in protest at the idea of him leaving the house. A growing ache in his chest at knowing he’d have to leave eventually for work.

All because of two tiny babies sleeping peacefully in their bassinets.

“Maybe I shouldn’t go in today,” Barry said out loud while his hand gently rubbed Dawn’s stomach.

His wife glanced at him over the rim of her coffee mug. One eyebrow arched up in silent judgment. Barry knew what she was thinking. He already had taken a month off work once the Twins were born. The first two weeks were paid paternity leave that he extended into four weeks by using up his vacations days. The past two days Barry had called in “sick”.

“You deal with Singh then,” Iris continued to flip through the newspaper. “He was nearly in tears the last time you didn’t go into work.”

“No he wasn’t,” Barry scoffed as he adjusted Don’s blanket.

“Okay maybe not tears,” Iris bit into her bagel, “More like a volcano ready to explode.”

Barry did feel a bit guilty. Captain Singh always had his back at the precinct. He’d covered Barry’s many unexplained absentees in the past and stood by his side during the Devoe murder trial. When Barry initially extended his paternity leave Sing had supported that too. But all men have their limit and Singh could only do so much without the head of the CSI department.

However he felt way more guilty over the thought of leaving his children.

“They’ll be okay Barry,” Iris softened when she caught the look on Barry’s face. “You’re not abandoning them to the wilderness to fend for themselves.”

Barry hummed in agreement but he still wasn’t quite sure. The Twins were so impossibly small. Their bodies soft and not strong enough to hold themselves up yet. He took one look at their small sleeping faces, their chests rising and falling with each breath, and he felt a wave of protectiveness like he had never felt before. Barry never thought he’d be the kind of over-bearing, over-protective Dad but apparently he was.

“Come on babe,” Iris walked over to him now to wrap her arms around his waist. “You can’t stay in this house with them forever.”

“Why not?” Barry half joked but he also seriously wondered why he couldn’t stay with his family and shut the rest of the world out.

“Central City needs Barry Allen,” Iris pressed her cheek to his arm. “You want the Twins to know their Dad goes to work everyday to protect people and bring bad guys to justice. Both at his day job and as The Flash.”

“I know you’re right,” Barry sighed out. He turned to look down at his wife with a vulnerable look on his face. “You don’t think…you don’t think they’ll eventually resent the fact I leave them do you?”

Iris looked at him sympathetically. This was a question Barry had asked her before. As much as he loved being a superhero he never liked the idea of leaving his family behind. This wasn’t a fear that could be quelled with reassurances and words. Both Barry and Iris knew he’d probably carry it for the rest of his life. Because that’s the kind of man Barry is.

“As long as you come home to us,” Iris reminded him. “And especially if you bring ice cream with you.”

Barry let out a snort of laughter that had Iris giggling.

“I’m being over dramatic aren’t I?” Barry gave Iris a rueful smile.

“You wouldn’t be you unless you were a little dramatic,” Iris went up to kiss his cheek.

Barry spent the next ten minutes saying goodbye to the Twins. He kissed their faces and telling them how much he loved and would miss them. Iris had to finally shove him out the door or else he wouldn’t get to work before noon.

With a heavy heart Barry sped off to work. His speed helping him bypass commuter traffic but even still he ended up being half an hour late. Barry had only stepped one foot into the main entrance at CCPD when Captain Singh pounced on him.

“Allen,” He greeted. “I barely remembered what you look like its been that long.”

Barry let out an awkward laugh that quickly petered off when Captain Singh didn’t laugh in return.

“I’ll just be heading up to my lab now,” Barry said in a desperate moved to escape.

“Do you need directions to you lab?” Captain Singh called as Barry practically ran up the stairs to his lab. “Its been a long time since you’ve been there.”

Barry spent the rest of the morning in a whirlwind of activity. He caught up with his team of lab techs to see what their progress had been the past month. Which of course took longer than normal because Barry had to show all the techs pictures of the Twins on his phone. Barry then read through the piles and piles of old reports and current cases in the privacy of his office so he could speed read through them. He managed to only be five minutes late to a department meeting where he spent most of his time watching the clock hoping it would end soon.

Hours later Barry collapsed into his desk chair exhausted. Half way through a day that simultaneously went too fast and too slow. A part of him loved being in the thick of things again. To use his mind for something other than baby formulas and what was the best way to swaddle each Twin. He couldn’t deny he enjoyed being back at work but a big part of him felt a pull to be home with his family.

His thoughts were broken by the sound of his phone beeping. He pulled it out of his pocket with his heart skipping when he saw Iris was sending him a Facetime invite. Never in his life did Barry move as fast as he did to hit the ‘ACCEPT’ option.

In seconds a small screen pops up on Barry’s phone revealing his wife and a now awake dawn on her lap.

“Hey you two,” Barry instantly broke out into a wide grin at the sight of them. “How are my two gorgeous girls doing?”

Dawn broke out into a toothless smile that lip up her big brown eyes. Her tiny hands waving about in excitement at seeing her Dad.

“That’s right Dawnie its Dada,” Iris kissed the top of their daughter’s head.

Dawn made happy gurgling sounds as Barry pulled silly faces that always made his daughter laugh.

“She was missing you,” Iris said cuddling closer to Dawn. “And I might of missed you a little too.”

“Only a little?” Barry teased back at his wife.

“Okay a 'lot’,” Iris stuck out her tongue playfully. “Turns out looking after Twins can be quite a handful. Hows your day going?”

“Slow. Also fast.” Barry sighed out. “I’m missing you guys like crazy.”

Iris gave him a sympathetic look before tilting the camera down to where Don was happily chewing on his toy elephant.

“Hey champ,” Barry instantly felt his spirits lift up. “Hows my best bud doing?”

For the rest of his lunch hour Barry happily face-timed with Iris and The Twins. It may not be the same as getting to be with them every day but it was the next best thing till he got home to his family.


End file.
